Chapter – I INTRODUCTION ______

Chapter – I INTRODUCTION _______________________________________________________________________ The Arabic word madrassa generally has two meanings: in its more common literal and colloquial usage, it simply means “school”; and in its secondary meaning, a madrassa is an educational institution offering instruction in Islamic subjects, the Quran, the sayings (hadith) of the Prophet Muhammad, jurisprudence (fiqh), and law. Madrassa, literally means a place where Dars (lesson) is given to students. In Arabic speaking- world, the term applies to all sorts of schools and in countries like Egypt and Lebanon, madrassa also refers to any educational institution (state-sponsored, private, secular, or religious). In India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, madrassa commonly refers to Islamic religious schools. In this thesis, the term madrassa refers to Islamic religious schools. Madrassas are broadly of two types, viz Qaumi Madrassa and Government Madrassa. Qaumi Madrassas are the madrassas that are run by the Qaum or by the community i.e. the Muslim community. On the other hand Government madrassas are the Madrassas that are maintained by the Government through its own course, curriculum and funding. Madrassa was originally meant to be a purely religio-cultural institution, aimed at preserving and propagating Islamic traditions. It was devoid of any political agenda or ideology. However, in Indian context, the political patronage that they were receiving in pre-British period enabled them to influence policy-making in an advisory role. With the passage of time, madrassas lost their sheen and utility. Especially the post- Mughal period saw the waning of madrassas as ‘centres of knowledge and excellence’. To make matters worse, even the institution got enmeshed in a vice-like grip of orthodoxy and conservatism, leading to its stagnation and subsequent downfall. During the British era, although the foundation of Calcutta Alia Madrassa in 1781 can be described as the beginning of the modern era of madrassa education in Indian subcontinent, its role in awakening Muslim consciousness and encouraging political activism was limited. The madrassa movement revived once again with the establishment of Dar- 1 ul-Ulum at Deoband in 1866. The institute played the dual role of disseminating Islamic knowledge and mobilizing the Indian Muslims to participate in the freedom struggle, for the purpose of expelling the British.1 Madrassas incited Indian Muslims to maintain their identity and entity as Muslims. It helped the Muslims not only to preserve their Islamic identity but also influenced the Indian culture and made a good synthesis in the form of Indo-Islamic culture. After the colonial occupation, Muslims feared the loss of their Islamic culture, thinking that it would either fall prey to the western culture or merge into the majority. It was the madrassas that emerged as a refuge to protect Islam and Muslim cultures. Manzoor Ahmed in his Islamic Education: redefinition of aims and methodology, stated, “The Deeni madaris in India in the last 200 years have played a role, which has no parallel in history. When the British imperialists occupied this country, they drove away the Muslim not only from the seats of political power but also from other areas of influence. The Christian missionaries mounted a ruthless assault on Islam and the Muslim, in the subcontinent. In those turbulent times, the problem of maintaining and deepening the Islamic identity of the recently converted Muslim masses was a formidable task. And this task fell upon the ill-organized and poor ulama in the country. History bears witness to the creditable manner in which the ulama not only checked the inroads being made by the British masters and Christian missionaries in to the cultural life of Muslims but also prepared a generation of freedom fighters.”2 The long struggle for India’s freedom came to an end with the ‘great’ division of the country in August 1947. In this long movement, the ulemas of different madrassas played significant role. Maulana Hussain Ahmed Madani, the Rector of Dar-ul-Ulum Deoband and the President of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind stated in his famous treatise “Hamara Hindustan Aur Uske Fazail” that according to Islam a true Muslim can and 1 Farhat Tabassum, Deoband Ulema’s Movement for Freedom of India, Manak, New Delhi, 2006, p.42 2 Manzoor Ahmed, Islamic Education: redefinition of aims and methodology, Genuine Publications & Media, Delhi, pp. 31,32, 2 should never be disloyal to his country.3 Although a section of ulemas in the last two decades of freedom sided with the Muslim League or the Partition Movement in creation of Pakistan basing their stand point on the misinterpretation of Quran4 but a good number of Ulemas especially of Deobandi ulemas significantly participated and also led from the front for the cause of the country’s freedom. In fact, if the Revolt of 1857 is considered as the ‘First War of India’s Independence’ the worst sufferers of the Revolt were the ulemas of India. Their Movement continued till the very last stage of the Colonial Government. But their roles have not been evaluated considerably, taking into extent the amount of sacrifices made by them. Farhat Tabassum stated, “A number of Ulema who mad significant contribution towards freedom movement have remained in obscurity. Moreover, there has been a trend to brand Muslims as separatists and natural supporters of the Muslim League in toto. The general distrust of the entire Muslim community before and even after the Partition has largely resulted in the segregation of the Muslims from the main stream”.5 However, there is no denying the fact that Muslim League popularized the idea that in independent India, Hindus by virtues of their majority would deprive Muslims from their rights and their identity would also be in stake, and so they needed their own homeland. Partition of India was a momentous event in the history of South Asia. Whether partition was inevitable or was there any alternative, this has been a matter of debate since independence. Partition of India in 1947 was not a sudden event or occurrence. There were forces, elements and agencies which generated the situation that made Partition inevitable. One important factor behind the partition was the communalization of Indian politics; communalists tried to use religion to communalise the common man, religious institution and agencies with the objectives of their communal interests. 3 Maulana Hussain Ahmed Madai, Hamara Hindustan Aur Uske Fazail, Al-Jamiat Book Depot, Delhi, p.8 4 Farhat Tabassum, p.6 5 Ibid, p.1 3 Eastern Indian politics especially the political situation of Assam and Bengal had been volatile from the very last decade of the 19th century. This part of Indian Sub- continent experienced the first physical division in the year 1905, although this was an internal division. Communal situation began to deteriorate steadily after the partition of Bengal under the British policy of ‘Divide and Rule’. Communalization of Indian politics had begun in large scale from 1922-1923 only after the annulment of Khilafat Non Co- Operation Movement, on which both Hindus and Muslim jointly moved against the British.6 The Deoband Movement which was started with the foundation of Dar-ul-Ulum, Deoband brought a new era in the history of madrassa education in India. It was basically established with the aim to preserve the Islamic values from the corrupting influence of the West particularly British.7 The Deoband movement played a vital role in the Muslims’ socio-political mobilization and it produced the revolutionary Ulemas like Maulana Mehmood-ul-Hasan, Maulana Obaidullah Sindhi, Maulana Hussain Ahmed Madani and others.8 Between 1911 – 1951, they issued 147,151 fatwas that directed and guided the Muslims in their socio-political life.9 Even in 1888, Rashid Ahmed Gangohi, the Rector of Dar-ul-Ulum, Deoband opposing Sir Syed Ahmed Khan of Aligarh issued fatwa in favour of Muslims political involvement with the Indian National Congress.10 All India Socio-Religious and Cultural Organization like ‘Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind’ were organized in 1919-20 under the initiative of the ulemas of Deoband with the objective to uplift the socio-political, economic and educational condition of the Muslims of India. The organization was not actually a political organization, but in the freedom movement of India, their role was not less than any major nationalist political party. Under the Presidentship of Hussain Ahmed Madani the organization assumed political character and 6 P. Hardy, The Muslim of British India, CUP, New Delhi, 1972, p.190 7 B. D. Metcalf, Islamic Revival in British India, Deoband: 1860 -1900, OUP, New Delhi, 1982, p.93 8 Farhat Tabassum, pp.7,8 9 P. Hardy, The Muslim of British India, CUP, New Delhi, 1972, p.171 10 Sayed Mohammad Miyan, Ulema-i-Haq Aur Unke Mujahedana Karname, Vol.-I, Kutubkhanah-i- Fakhriya, Muradabad, p.101 4 even participated in the Provincial Election.11 Between 1940 – 1947 the ulemas of Deobandi madrassas and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind vehemently opposed the Partition Movement. Seldom before that had the Ulemas taken a stand so contrary to the political instinct of the intellectual elite and the masses of the people.12 Deobandi Madrassas were established throughout the country including Bengal and Assam. During the physical division of the country these madrassas also actively participated in the areas of operation. Communalists in certain extent succeeded in communalizing the religious institutions in favour of the partition but a good number of Madrassas (Deobandi) actively participated in the movement against the partition of the country. The Muslim League did not receive the support of the majority of the Indian ulema, nor even of the majority of the Indian Muslims, who, in any case, did not have any voice in deciding the political future of the country.

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